This is the Maroon
way of peeling coconut in the jungle
Let's see it.
Right now we are in the
John Crow Hills
deep in the Blue Mountains
of Jamaica, and things
are about to get super interesting.
We're here at the Scotts Hall Maroon Town.
The Maroons were originally escaped
slaves who carved out autonomous
regions within the hills of Jamaica.
We're meeting up with Colonel Pink
who is the leader of this community.
He's going to share more about Maroon culture
and what makes them unique in Jamaica.
The Maroons are descended from
West African slaves brought to
Jamaica by the Spanish.
They escaped slavery and fled to the
mountains to live off the land
with the Taino Indians.
But their numbers surged in 1655.
When the British invaded Jamaica,
the Spanish abandoned their plantations,
and more slaves escaped to join
the Maroons in Jamaica's isolated
central mountains.
When the British tried to take control,
the Maroons fought two guerilla wars,
eventually forcing the British to
recognize their autonomy and establish
their freedom in late 1700s,
more than 50 years before the British
abolished the slave trade,
and over 200 years before
Jamaica's independence.
My name is Marko,
and I'm one of the Vagabrothers.
I'm Alex,
and I'm also one of the Vagabrothers.
Nice to meet you guys.
Just to explain some more about
Maroon Town....
Is that a warning for the farmer up there
saying it's you guys; it's ok?
When we were coming up the valley,
you guys were blowing that.
That's so cool.
Yeah. It's so cool.
It's just a really fascinating story.
This culture has been here for
hundreds of years.
The first freed people here in Jamaica
and they did it through perseverance
and will power.
Colonel Pink and the captain just
explained to us that this village
is now turning itself into
a tourist destination with a bed
and breakfast and cultural experiences
open to visitors.
We're in the back of this flatbed truck
going down this dirt road
heading down to the river.
It's pretty awesome.
The entire group is here with their drums
with their horns, making a racket.
This is wild right now, honestly.
I had no idea we'd be doing this,
but I'm so happy that we did.
I have to say that as a traveler,
it's such a privilege to be able to see
this, to be able to partake in this.
You can see from these mountains here
that this is really rugged terrain
If you can't tell, we are bouncing around.
It's this impassible terrain that first
allowed the Maroons to escape here
from British rule and that has since
allowed them to preserve their culture.
One of the squad has just climbed
the fruit tree.
He's twenty feet in the air, and he's
just chucking ripe apples down.
As you can see, very nice.
It's not easy to get in;
it's not easy to get out, but we're
finding that if you make it here,
it's very much worth the trip.
We have taken the truck down to this
village in the middle of this valley.
It's down by the river, and now we are
heading into the jungle.
We're cruising with the Maroon,
and we're going in.
We're standing next to what's literally
called the Irie River.
Jamaica is full of rivers; that's where
the name comes from.
The Taino people were the original
inhabitants in Jamaica.
In Arawak, their language, this means
the land of wood and water.
Jamaica still is one of the biggest
producers of potable water in the world.
That's why cruise ships stop here to
restock, and they still export their water
as far as Singapore and other countries.
What's that mean? Maroon picnic.
He's picking fruit.
Yeah, he's picking fruit.
Mmmm. It's kind of like a plum.
One of the things that is fascinating
it just seems like every couple of feet,
we're being stopped and told that
this plant is used for that
or this fruit is edible; you can make a
spice or a marinade.
I think that's one of the coolest things
about being here.
We're getting some serious knowledge
on the usage of all the different plants.
Want some?
The Maroons only survived because
they knew how to live off the land.
I think it's really interesting how the
structure of the society has military
names like Colonel, Captain.
It's almost like you can see how
this was a culture that was formed
during wartime and that cohesion
of being a unit walking through
these valleys, you can still see where
it came from. it's very cool.
But it's all peace and love now.
All peace and love now. No more war.
Right behind us is a water fall and
back in the day, this was the only
entrance into the Maroon's village,
which would have been way up there.
We always use a river as our road.
We just arrived at the river,
and we had a really interesting surprise.
Some more of the Maroon community
just came up the river with some
spear guns, fishing.
It's the way the Maroons have traditionally
fished for food to eat, but it looks
like the freshest way to catch a fish.
Well, that was one of the coolest
experiences we've had in a very,
very long time.
Big up for the Scotts Hall Maroon Community
for welcoming us into their lands
and sharing their cultures with us so
that we can share it with you guys.
Definitely, if you come to Jamaica,
make sure you check out the Maroons.
We'll leave some contact information
in the info box because the door's open.
Alright guys, if you enjoyed that video,
you know what to do: thumbs-up,
share it with your friends.
Drop a comment and subscribe if
you haven't already.
In the meantime, stay curious,
keep exploring, and we'll see you guys
on the road. Peace.
This is insane.